Face-to-Avatar: Augmented Face-to-Face Communication with Aerotop Telepresence System

We have developed a face-to-avatar system that integrates a blimp with a virtual avatar for a unique telepresence system. Our aerotop telepresence system has two advantages comparing with conventional telepresence systems. One is to provide unique communication between user and physical blimp avatar. The blimp works as an avatar and contains several pieces of equipment, including a projector and a speaker. The user's presence is dramatically enhanced compared to using conventional virtual avatars (e.g., CG and images) because the avatar is a physical object that can move freely in the real world. The other is that the user's senses are augmented because the blimp detects dynamic information in the real world. For example, the camera provides the user with a special floating view, and the microphone catches a wide variety of sounds such as conversations and environmental noises. This paper describes our face-to-avatar concept and its implementation.